I have an Akebia trifoliata, chocolate vine. It’s three years old. It bloomed the first year, fewer blooms the second year. . . no blooms at all the third year. Plenty of foliage, but no flowers. It’s in full sun, on a south wall, growing on an arbor. It’s about 12′ long/tall. Any suggestions?

I’ve had them for about 4 years. They grow on a trellis. My question is that only one of the plants will bear a few blossoms in the early spring but it never produces any fruit. They receive several hours of morning sun, then light shade starting about 1:30 or so. They have well drained soil. They grow on the”sunny” side of some redwoods. I water them once a week. The vines are leafy and grow well, but I want to know what I can do to make them flower better and produce fruit.

ANSWERS

theficuswrangler

The general diagnosis for non-flowering is that there is not enough sun, or too much nitrogen in the soil. So the first thing you could do is move your plants to a sunnier spot. This may sound like a lot of work, but remember gardeners often have to move plants around until they find the perfect spots for all of them -- and then they go and move them some more, just because. Another thing to do would be to add phosphorous in the form of bone meal. (I personally try to avoid using high-phosphorous fertilizer if I can because of the dangers to the environment of fertilizer run off.) You might also increase the organic content of the soil with mulch. Here's an article that might give you some more tips: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/vines/chocolate-vine/chocolate-vine-plants.htm

My chocolate vine foliage has dark rust color on leaves. New leaves are green. Is this normal? I bought two chocolate vines two months ago from a nursery online. When I received them, one looked okay and the other one looked bad. I planted them together in a planter with potting soil and perlite. I made sure the drainage was good and it gets full sun and partial sun. I water it every other day or every day. Both of them started growing really well. But I noticed that the older leaves have dark rust color on the leaves. The new growth doesn’t. I don’t see any vining and it’s not growing rapidly as I thought. I check my flowers every day and now I’m worried that it stopped growing. Please help me. I don’t want this plant to die. Thank you for any advice and tips you can give me.

ANSWERS

DowntoearthdigsCertified GKH Gardening Expert

You mention watering everyday, water only when the top inch or 2 of soil is dry. The pot appears large for the size of plant you have, so the roots are most likely waterlogged.

You may want to repot into a smaller container. I do think the plant will improve and then if need be you could go up to a larger size.

You will need to read the package application directions to determine if it is recommended for ornamental vines.
I would however recommend the use of Neem Oil. Neem Oil is organic and safe for people, pets and bees.
Follow application directions for this product also.